EU Tells Bolivia's Interim Government To Call New Elections

BRUSSELS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2019) The European Union endorses Bolivia's caretaker government but sees its role as returning the nation to "constitutional normality" by holding new elections, the EU foreign policy chief said on Friday.

"The European Union supports an institutional solution that allows for a caretaking interim leadership to prepare for new elections, and to avoid a power vacuum," Federica Mogherini said in a declaration.

She blamed weeks of unrest in the Latin American country on alleged irregularities during the October 20 general election, which saw President Evo Morales win a fourth term.

Mogherini urged all parties to support new elections, and warned that "political retribution" would only deepen divisions. Dozens of lawmakers and officials have recently sought asylum in the Mexican Embassy in La Paz.

The Bolivian military asked Morales to stand down last week, which he did on Sunday. The Socialist Party leader then fled to Mexico on Tuesday. In his absence, the Senate's opposition deputy speaker, Jeanine Anez, took over as interim president.